Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski from The Big Lebowski. Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski, played by Jeff Bridges, is a fictional character in the Coen Brother’s 1998 film The Big Lebowski. The Dude is a middle-aged lay about who lives in Venice, California. His interests include bowling, smoking marijuana, drinking White Russians, and listening to Creedence Clearwater Revival. In the film, the Dude becomes mixed up in the affairs of another Jeffrey Lebowski, played by David Huddleston, and the disappearance of his wife Bunny Lebowski, played by Tara Reid. This happens at the beginning of the film, when the Dude’s apartment is broken into by vandals who mistake him for the other much richer Lebowski. During this incident, one of the vandals urinates on the Dude’s rug. Later, the Dude’s friend Walter Sobchak, played by John Goodman, suggests that the dude find this other Lebowski and demand compensation for his soiled rug. This sets off a chain of events that involve the Dude becoming the Big Lebowski’s intermediary, having his car stolen and damaged, and being attacked by a group of German nihilists.

The Dude is often called a bum because of his mellow demeanor and homely appearance. He seems to be content with living a life of mediocrity as can be seen in the decor of his shabby apartment and rusted old car. He has the look of a college dropout but his wit is very sharp. Throughout the film the dude can be heard giving snide and smart aleck remarks under his breath. Of his friends, Walter Sobchak and Theodore “Donny” Kerabatsos, played by Steve Buscemi, the Dude appears to be the most intelligent and cautious. Walter, on the other hand, counter balances this by being aggressive and reckless. In fact, the Dude would probably not have ever gotten involved in the Big Lebowski’s affairs if Walter had not pushed him to confront the Big Lebowski about his soiled rug. Throughout the film, the Dude is pushed into more tough situations because of Walter’s actions. For example, the Dude is ordered by the Big Lebowski to deliver a ransom to his wife’s kidnappers. This would be a simple task, however the Dude decides to let Walter ride with him despite the kidnapper’s instructions that he come alone. On the way to the rendezvous with the kidnappers, Walter reveals that he will be giving the kidnappers a bag full of his dirty laundry, or a “ringer” as he calls it, instead of the suitcase full of the Big Lebowski’s ransom money. The Dude, wanting to give the kidnapper’s the ransom, fails to prevent Walter from giving the ringer. This, of course, exacerbates everything and puts the Dude in a tougher spot than he was before.

The Coen Brothers have said that the Dude was inspired by their friend Pete Exline. Pete Exline gave the inspiration for the scene in the film where the Dude finds a twelve year old’s homework in his stolen car^[1]. Another inspiration for the Dude was Jeff Dowd^[2]. Jeff Dowd is a famous being a member of the “Seattle Seven,” which the Dude admits to being a member of in the film^[3]. Dowd met the Coen Brothers while they were working on the film Blood Simple^[4].

Since the film’s debut, the Dude has become somewhat of a pop culture icon. This is evident in the creation of the Annual Lebowski Fest. This festival began in Louisville, Kentucky in 2002 with 150 attendees and has now spread to other areas of the country. The festival’s activities include bowling, drinking White Russians, live music, vendor booths, trivia and costume contests, and various kinds of Lebowski inspired games. Celebrities have been known to make appearances at Lebowski Fest including Jeff Dowd and Jeff Bridges. Lebowski Fest has even moved to the United Kingdom and is held in Edinburgh and London^[5].

The Dude has also inspired a kind of online religion called Dudeism. This religion is based online and has over 50,000 ordained priests worldwide and a publication called the Dudespaper^[6]. The Dudeism following, or “The Church of the Latter-day Dude” is based on the website dudeism.com. Here one can read the Take it Easy Manifesto or become an ordained Dudeist priest^[7].